‘Housewives’ soft in Spain

Second season ratings down for U.S. skein

MADRID — Disney maybe looking forward to “Desperate Housewives” wooing Latin America, but it’s been less than successful in Spain.

After its soft first season averaged an 18.5% share for TVE-1, “Desperate Housewives” wrapped its second season July 25 with an even weaker 12.2% average.

Industryites feel skedding maybe to blame. TVE-1 skews old and rural, rather than young, hip and middle-class — skein’s more natural aud.

Net bowed “Desperate Housewives” Thursday, March 23, in a “woman’s night” primetime double bill with Spanish drama “Con dos tacones”; that may have been too much femme-targeted entertainment.

Commercial broadcasters Telecinco and Antena 3 moved their top dramas, “The Serranos” and “Aqui no hay quien viva,” respectively, to Thursdays to blow “Housewives” out of the water and weaken TVE-1’s traditional dominance of that evening.

Shunted to Tuesdays, where it went up against “House,” “Housewives” then bounced all over the sked, making it hard for auds to find.

Yet with TVE-1’s overall share slipping from 19% last summer to 16%-17% this month, “Housewives” can’t be rated an absolute failure.